


ocean eyes

by the_forgotten_daydreamer



Series: Voltron: Legendary Defender [14]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Based on a Billie Eilish Song, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Deathfic, Gay Keith (Voltron), Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Hurt Keith (Voltron), Hurt Lance (Voltron), Hurt No Comfort, Insecure Lance (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, Keith/Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, Langst, M/M, Pining, Sad Ending, Songfic, klangst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-23
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:47:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23805577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_forgotten_daydreamer/pseuds/the_forgotten_daydreamer
Summary: How Keith fell in love with Lance, and how he lost him too soon.-inspired by Billie Eilish's song.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron), Lance & Voltron: Legendary Defender Team
Series: Voltron: Legendary Defender [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1680511
Comments: 17
Kudos: 88





	ocean eyes

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: I do not own the song nor these characters.

**_I've been watching you for some time..._**

The first time Keith laid his gaze upon those ocean eyes, time stopped.

Never before he’d witnessed such purity, such beauty in one’s eyes, so deep yet warm, so calm yet intense. And that’s when Keith fell in love for the first time, helpless against his soul’s desire. And this kid talked- a lot- but Keith couldn’t listen. He didn’t even remember this guy’s name, to be honest.

He could only stare in amazement. He wished he could look at those stunning eyes forever.

But life had other plans for him.

_**...Can't stop staring at those oceans eyes...** _

“Who are you?” Keith asked, staring worriedly at his brother’s slack face as the other guy stood on the other side.

“Who am I? Huh, the name's Lance? We were in the same class at the Garrison..?” the guy- Lance- tried.

“Really? Are you an engineer?” Keith asked, surprised but not really. He had other things to worry about now, more urgent, more important than some stranger that-

“No, I'm a pilot!” he screeched, and Keith instinctively raised his amethyst gaze because _damn it, be quiet._

He never got those words out; the realization was dawning. It was _him._

Time stopped again, Keith’s heart leaping in his seizing chest.

Those eyes...

Those unique, unmistakable, heavenly ocean eyes.

“-know, Lance and Keith, neck and neck-” Lance kept talking, and he seemed desperate to find Keith’s approval. 

The rest was a blur.

_**...Burning cities and napalm skies, fifteen flares inside those ocean eyes...** _

“Lance, what are you doing!? Get it right for once, would you!?” Keith snarled, his hands tight on Red’s helms as he pivoted through the enemy ships, “you’re gonna get us all killed, idiot!”

 _“They’re on my tail, Keith! Not like I can do much about it unless you get your shit together and help me!”_ Lance replied, equally furious on the other side of the comm. And the Red Paladin grunted, eyes shut as he took a deep breath. He watched as Lance elegantly wriggled away from the cruisers following Blue closely: the ion cannons kept firing mercilessly in Lance’s direction, but he avoided all the hits by the skin of his teeth. And Keith hated it.

It was always too close, _too close._

Lance managed to make his way out of that Galra-plagued mess, Blue battered but in one piece, and a wormhole jump later, Lance was left tired and out of breath as he panted in his seat. He didn’t want to do this anymore, because his best wasn’t nearly good enough.

 _He_ wasn’t good enough.

“What were you thinking? That move could’ve killed you...” Keith pointed out on his and Lance’s private line, not really angry. He never was, not with Lance. He couldn’t be.

“...Lance?”

_“Shut up, Keith. Leave me alone.”_

He bit his lip, “Hey… I’m sorry.”

 _“Quit it, I said. Let me rest.”_ he whispered, and turned the comm off.

Keith’s stomach churned in anxiety as he eyed the Blue Lion from far away, hoping to see Lance. He couldn’t, of course. But he wanted to. He needed to.

He was sorry for how he’d yelled: he was terrified earlier, not mad at Lance.

The Red Paladin was scared for Lance, because he knew how selfless he was. He knew that the Cuban would have done anything to protect the others, he knew that he didn’t care for himself enough.

And Lance knew it too, and he too wasn’t mad with the other paladin. No, he was mad at himself. He was angry, furious, enraged because he wasn’t good enough. Lance hated being the weak link of the chain, he despised himself for all the times the others had to wait for him to just get it right.

He hated himself.

_**...Your ocean eyes...** _

Keith sat at the table silently, poking at his food goo unenthusiastically. 

“It’s not going to disappear if you poke at it, y’know...” Hunk joked, elbowing him.

The Japanese huffled out an empty laugh, and stared at his plate again.

“Where’s Lance?” Allura asked, looking around, “Is he sick?” she added, concerned.

“I haven’t seen him since his and Keith’s mission.” Shiro pointed out, grabbing a big bite of what resembled bread, only bright lilac and saltier.

Pidge nuged at Keith from the other side, “Did you beat him in one of your stupid rivarly matches? Hm?”

“No. He’s just sleepy, I think. Don’t know, don’t care." Keith lied, shrugging.

He felt guilty. It was his fault if Lance was doubting his worth, and Keith knew he was. 

“You should bring him some dinner, though. It’s not healthy for you youngsters to go to bed on an empty stomach!” Coran chirped out.

“I don’t want to-”

“Coran’s right, Keith. You can go now, since you don’t seem likely to finish what you have on your plate anyway.” Shiro pointed out, a brotherly smile on his face.

He growled, grabbing the plate that Hunk had prepared for Lance and stomping out of the dining hall.

He wasn’t ready to face Lance. He couldn’t face him now, when both of them were so vulnerable and upset.

_**...No fair! You really know how to make me cry when you give me those ocean eyes...** _

“I’m sorry,” Keith exhaled for the umpteenth time, “I said I didn’t mean it, okay? Stop being a baby now.”

“Me!? A baby!? No, _you_ are the baby in this situation!” Lance yelled in his face, foreheads pressed together, seething, “I’m working my ass off for this team and all you tell me is that I’m doing it wrong. Would it kill you to be kind with me for once in your life? Would it!?”

“That’s not true!” Keith snarled back, hands up in the air, “I tell you those things when you make mistakes, not 'all the time' like you claim."

Lance hummed, pulling away, “Hang on, but if I’m wrong all the time like you said in _multiple_ occasions in the past, what, two weeks, and if you tell me those things when I fuck up, that means that you yell at me all the time! Am I making sense, or is this too hard for a dropout to understand?”

“Watch it, Lance.”

“You watch it, Keith! I’m so fucking tired of this. I’m- I’m tired of not being good enough for you. I’m so, _so_ tired of being told I’m not enough...” his ocean eyes sparkles.

The anger quickly dissipated, and Keith could see the exact instant when the dam broke.

“I’m sorry I’m not enough.” his voice was quieter now, a whisper, defeated and low, “I never asked to be here. It was a mistake, I know that. I… I know. I do.” he muttered, sitting on his bed.

He brought a shaky pair of hands up, pressing the palms in his sockets.

Keith swore he heard a sob, and his own heart broke.

“Lance, I..." but what could he say? What could he possibly say without giving how he felt away so easily? What could he say that wouldn’t let Lance understand how Keith really felt toward him? What could he say without being rejected?

"I’m tired. Thanks for bringing me dinner. Now go.” he breathed out from his position.

“Lance...” he whispered, only for the Cuban to raise his gaze.

Silent, transparent pearls gently dripped down tanned cheeks, ocean orbs shiny.

“Go, please.” and that was a real plea.

Keith’s breath itched, throat suddenly tight, chest shallow and empty. Nodding briefly, he left.

And Keith cried.

**_...I'm scared! I've never fallen from quite this high, falling into your ocean eyes..._ **

“I love you.” he blurted out, “I love you. I’ve loved you for years. Lance, I… I love you."

His grip tightened around Lance’s hands, and the latter smiled, so warmly and reassuringly.

“I love you too, Keith. I really do.” he breathed out.

They’d come a long way. Time changes people, and they were no exception. Lance and Keith had grown older and wiser during those first two years spent in space, and they had also learnt that life wasn’t as long as it seemed. Not when they were fighting a war at such a young age, not when the universe depended from them.

“I want to spend the rest of my life with you,” Keith confessed, diverting his gaze as his face tinged in red, “I know we’re barely twenty-one and probably not competent enough to do this on our own, and- and I know it’s sudden, but-”

“Keith.”

“Y-yeah?”

“I do too. I do too, Keith.” he murmured, pressing his warm lips on Keith’s, slowly, tenderly, eyes fluttering closed as they savoured each other’s taste, breath, scent, taking everything inside, enjoying every single instant of it, tongues timidly discovering something new.

Keith wrapped his arms around Lance’s waist, and the latter did the same, fingers craving the bare skin but not being allowed due to the thick layers of armor.

The two pulled apart, breathless.

Amethyst pools melted into sapphire orbs, so full of emotions.

_**...Those ocean eyes...** _

Keith held onto Lance tightly. He wasn't going to let him go. He was never going to let Lance go.

Empty, unfocused blue eyes stared into nothingness, falling somewhere behind Keith’s.

“Please, look at me” he whispered, cradling the Cuban’s blood-matted hair, “look at me, baby… Please, Lance...” he hiccupped.

It wasn’t right. It couldn't be.

Those ocean eyes were meant to be bright, lively, warm, gentle. It wasn’t right.

They weren’t meant to be so dull, a void.

“Lance… Please… Let me see those ocean eyes of yours, baby...” Keith breathed out, tears dripping onto the Blue Paladin’s face without making a sound.

**Author's Note:**

> So, yeah, I’ve had this idea for a while now! It's my first songfic, and I’ve read three (maybe four?) in my life. Still, I had fun! I have no idea if this can be considered as a songfic as I’ve not used the whole song, but just the lyrics that I liked the most for klance. How did I do?  
> -  
> DON’T READ AND RUN!! Leave kudos and comments if you enjoyed this, please! Don’t forget to check my other works as well (I’ve put them all together in this series)! Thanks, and stay safe :)  
> -  
> 


End file.
